Classical ballet, opera, music at the White Nights Festival The "Stars of the White Nights" (Music festival "Stars of the White Nights") is a series of
classical ballet,
opera, and orchestral performances at the Mariinsky Theatre and the Mariinsky Concert Hall, as the essential part of the White Nights Festival in St. Petersburg. The artistic director of the festival is
Valery Gergiev. The "Stars of the White Nights" festival was originally started by the first mayor of St. Petersburg,
Anatoly Sobchak, and has been held annually since 1993. Some of the stars who performed here include
Plácido Domingo,
Olga Borodina,
Alfred Brendel,
Anna Netrebko,
Carlo Maria Giulini,
Yuri Temirkanov,
Gidon Kremer,
Esa-Pekka Salonen,
Alexander Toradze,
Deborah Voigt,
James Conlon and many other classical performers.
Pop music The festival will feature concerts by
popular music performers from
Eastern Europe,
Asia and other countries of the world, as well as an international competition for young
vocalists. Over the years, the
headliners of the pop music festival were
Chris Norman,
Bonnie Tyler,
Deep Purple,
Level 42,
Scorpions,
Patricia Kaas,
Eros Ramazzotti,
Anastacia,
Seal,
Jason Derulo,
Svetlana Loboda,
A-Studio,
Vera Brezhneva,
Sergei Lazarev, and in 2019 a tribute to the 50-year career of
Alla Pugacheva.
Scarlet Sails celebration The
Scarlet Sails celebration in St. Petersburg is a public event during the White Nights, known in Russian as "Alye Parusa" festivity. The event is highly popular for spectacular fireworks and a massive show celebrating the end of the school year: Sails" celebration in St. Petersburg The popularity of both the book and the tradition was boosted after the 1961 release of the movie titled "Alye parusa" ("
Scarlet sails" in English), starring
Anastasiya Vertinskaya and
Vasily Lanovoy.
Carnivals of the White Nights A series of carnivals take place during the White Nights Festival in St. Petersburg.
Star performances at the Palace Square with the
Alexander Column view from the
Winter PalaceEvery summer in St. Petersburg the
Palace Square becomes a stage for international stars of popular music.
Marathon From 1990 to 2019 and resuming in 2024, the festival has included the
White Nights International Marathon and
10K run through the streets of
St. Petersburg. More than 5,000 runners take part each year. ==White Nights Festival in the media==